As Introduced

136th General Assembly

Regular Session H. B. No. 548

2025-2026

To amend sections 3701.143 and 4117.10 and to enact section 2935.34 of the Revised Code to require testing for alcohol or drugs of abuse after incidents involving an officer's use of force.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

Section 1. That sections 3701.143 and 4117.10 be amended and section 2935.34 of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:

Sec. 2935.34. (A) As used in this section:

(1) "Controlled substance" has the same meaning as in section 3719.01 of the Revised Code.

(2) "Corrections officer" means a person employed by a detention facility as a corrections officer.

(3) "Detention facility" means any public or private place used for the confinement of a person charged with or convicted of any crime in this state or another state or under the laws of the United States or alleged or found to be a delinquent child or unruly child in this state or another state or under the laws of the United States.

(4) "Drug of abuse" has the same meaning as in section 4506.01 of the Revised Code.

(5) "Prescription" has the same meaning as in section 4729.01 of the Revised Code.

(6) "Prohibited concentration of alcohol, a controlled substance, or a metabolite of a controlled substance" means either of the following:

(a) A concentration in the person's whole blood, blood serum or plasma, breath, or urine that equals or exceeds an amount specified in division (A)(1) of section 4511.19 of the Revised Code;

(b) A concentration in the person's whole blood, blood serum or plasma, breath, or urine that equals or exceeds an amount specified in a collective bargaining agreement entered into under Chapter 4117. of the Revised Code, provided the concentration specified in the agreement is lower than the amount specified in division (A)(1) of section 4511.19 of the Revised Code.

(7) "Use of force" means force exerted by a peace officer or corrections officer in the officer's official capacity that results in serious physical harm to property, serious physical harm to persons, or death. "Use of force" includes the discharge of a firearm or the use of a gas or explosive device, except when it occurs in a training or routine practice setting or when it does not cause serious physical harm to persons or property.

(B) Within three hours after an incident involving use of force, a peace officer or corrections officer who engaged in the use of force shall submit to a chemical test to determine the presence and concentration of alcohol, any controlled substance, or a metabolite of a controlled substance in the officer's whole blood, blood serum or plasma, breath, or urine. An officer who was present at the time of the incident, but not engaged in the use of force, is not required to submit to a chemical test.

(C) The bodily substance withdrawn under division (B) of this section shall be analyzed in accordance with methods approved by the director of health by an individual possessing a valid permit issued by the director under section 3701.143 of the Revised Code.

(D) If a chemical test administered under this section indicates a prohibited concentration of alcohol, a controlled substance, or a metabolite of a controlled substance, the officer's employer shall report the test results to the prosecutor where the employer is located and to the bureau of criminal identification and investigation if the bureau is investigating the officer's use of force. The prosecutor shall consider whether to prosecute the officer for any offense related to the use of force while under the influence of alcohol, a drug of abuse, or both.

(E)(1) In addition to reporting a chemical test indicating a prohibited concentration of alcohol, a controlled substance, or a metabolite of a controlled substance to a prosecutor as required by division (D) of this section, the officer's employer shall take any corrective or disciplinary action required by an applicable law, ordinance, policy, or collective bargaining agreement, including requiring the officer to attend drug and alcohol counseling if appropriate under the circumstances.

(2) An officer who refuses to submit to a chemical test as required under division (B) of this section is subject to corrective or disciplinary action in accordance with division (E)(1) of this section as though the officer had submitted to the test and the results indicated a prohibited concentration of alcohol, a controlled substance, or a metabolite of a controlled substance.

(F) Divisions (D) and (E) of this section do not apply to a peace officer or corrections officer whose chemical test indicates a prohibited amount of a controlled substance or metabolite of a controlled substance if both of the following apply:

(1) The officer obtained the controlled substance pursuant to a prescription issued by a licensed health professional authorized to prescribe drugs.

(2) The officer injected, ingested, or inhaled the controlled substance in accordance with the health professional's directions.

Sec. 3701.143. (A) As used in this section, "drug of abuse" has the same meaning as in section 4506.01 of the Revised Code.

(B) For purposes of sections 1547.11, 2935.34, 4511.19, and 4511.194 of the Revised Code, the director of health shall determine, or cause to be determined, techniques or methods for chemically analyzing a person's whole blood, blood serum or plasma, urine, breath, oral fluid, or other bodily substance in order to ascertain the presence or amount of alcohol, a drug of abuse, controlled substance, metabolite of a controlled substance, or combination of them in the person's whole blood, blood serum or plasma, urine, breath, oral fluid, or other bodily substance. The director shall approve satisfactory techniques or methods, ascertain the qualifications of individuals to conduct such analyses, and issue permits to qualified persons authorizing them to perform such analyses. Such permits shall be subject to termination or revocation at the discretion of the director.

Sec. 4117.10. (A) An agreement between a public employer and an exclusive representative entered into pursuant to this chapter governs the wages, hours, and terms and conditions of public employment covered by the agreement. If the agreement provides for a final and binding arbitration of grievances, public employers, employees, and employee organizations are subject solely to that grievance procedure and the state personnel board of review or civil service commissions have no jurisdiction to receive and determine any appeals relating to matters that were the subject of a final and binding grievance procedure. Where no agreement exists or where an agreement makes no specification about a matter, the public employer and public employees are subject to all applicable state or local laws or ordinances pertaining to the wages, hours, and terms and conditions of employment for public employees. All of the following prevail over conflicting provisions of agreements between employee organizations and public employers:

(1) Laws pertaining to any of the following subjects:

(a) Civil rights;

(b) Affirmative action;

(d) Workers' compensation;

(e) The retirement of public employees;

(f) Residency requirements;

(g) The minimum educational requirements contained in the Revised Code pertaining to public education including the requirement of a certificate by the fiscal officer of a school district pursuant to section 5705.41 of the Revised Code;

(h) The provisions of division (A) of section 124.34 of the Revised Code governing the disciplining of officers and employees who have been convicted of a felony;

(i) The minimum standards promulgated by the director of education and workforce pursuant to division (D) of section 3301.07 of the Revised Code.

(2) The law pertaining to the leave of absence and compensation provided under section 5923.05 of the Revised Code, if the terms of the agreement contain benefits which are less than those contained in that section or the agreement contains no such terms and the public authority is the state or any agency, authority, commission, or board of the state or if the public authority is another entity listed in division (B) of section 4117.01 of the Revised Code that elects to provide leave of absence and compensation as provided in section 5923.05 of the Revised Code;

(3) The law pertaining to the leave established under section 5906.02 of the Revised Code, if the terms of the agreement contain benefits that are less than those contained in section 5906.02 of the Revised Code;

(4) The law pertaining to excess benefits prohibited under section 3345.311 of the Revised Code with respect to an agreement between an employee organization and a public employer entered into on or after September 29, 2015.

(5) The requirements of section 2935.34 of the Revised Code that a peace officer or corrections officer submit to a chemical test after an incident involving the use of force, as defined in that section, and that the officer's employer report the results and take appropriate corrective or disciplinary actions.

Except for sections 306.08, 306.12, 306.35, and 4981.22 of the Revised Code and arrangements entered into thereunder, and section 4981.21 of the Revised Code as necessary to comply with section 13(c) of the "Urban Mass Transportation Act of 1964," 87 Stat. 295, 49 U.S.C.A. 1609(c), as amended, and arrangements entered into thereunder, this chapter prevails over any and all other conflicting laws, resolutions, provisions, present or future, except as otherwise specified in this chapter or as otherwise specified by the general assembly. Nothing in this section prohibits or shall be construed to invalidate the provisions of an agreement establishing supplemental workers' compensation or unemployment compensation benefits or exceeding minimum requirements contained in the Revised Code pertaining to public education or the minimum standards promulgated by the director of education and workforce pursuant to division (D) of section 3301.07 of the Revised Code.

(B) The public employer shall submit a request for funds necessary to implement an agreement and for approval of any other matter requiring the approval of the appropriate legislative body to the legislative body within fourteen days of the date on which the parties finalize the agreement, unless otherwise specified, but if the appropriate legislative body is not in session at the time, then within fourteen days after it convenes. The legislative body must approve or reject the submission as a whole, and the submission is deemed approved if the legislative body fails to act within thirty days after the public employer submits the agreement. The parties may specify that those provisions of the agreement not requiring action by a legislative body are effective and operative in accordance with the terms of the agreement, provided there has been compliance with division (C) of this section. If the legislative body rejects the submission of the public employer, either party may reopen all or part of the entire agreement.

As used in this section, "legislative body" includes the governing board of a municipal corporation, school district, college or university, village, township, or board of county commissioners or any other body that has authority to approve the budget of their public jurisdiction and, with regard to the state, "legislative body" means the controlling board.

(C) The chief executive officer, or the chief executive officer's representative, of each municipal corporation, the designated representative of the board of education of each school district, college or university, or any other body that has authority to approve the budget of their public jurisdiction, the designated representative of the board of county commissioners and of each elected officeholder of the county whose employees are covered by the collective negotiations, and the designated representative of the village or the board of township trustees of each township is responsible for negotiations in the collective bargaining process; except that the legislative body may accept or reject a proposed collective bargaining agreement. When the matters about which there is agreement are reduced to writing and approved by the employee organization and the legislative body, the agreement is binding upon the legislative body, the employer, and the employee organization and employees covered by the agreement.

(D) There is hereby established an office of collective bargaining in the department of administrative services for the purpose of negotiating with and entering into written agreements between state agencies, departments, boards, and commissions and the exclusive representative on matters of wages, hours, terms and other conditions of employment and the continuation, modification, or deletion of an existing provision of a collective bargaining agreement. Nothing in any provision of law to the contrary shall be interpreted as excluding the bureau of workers' compensation and the industrial commission from the preceding sentence. This office shall not negotiate on behalf of other statewide elected officials or boards of trustees of state institutions of higher education who shall be considered as separate public employers for the purposes of this chapter; however, the office may negotiate on behalf of these officials or trustees where authorized by the officials or trustees. The staff of the office of collective bargaining are in the unclassified service. The director of administrative services shall fix the compensation of the staff.

The office of collective bargaining shall:

(1) Assist the director in formulating management's philosophy for public collective bargaining as well as planning bargaining strategies;

(2) Conduct negotiations with the exclusive representatives of each employee organization;

(3) Coordinate the state's resources in all mediation, fact-finding, and arbitration cases as well as in all labor disputes;

(4) Conduct systematic reviews of collective bargaining agreements for the purpose of contract negotiations;

(5) Coordinate the systematic compilation of data by all agencies that is required for negotiating purposes;

(6) Prepare and submit an annual report and other reports as requested to the governor and the general assembly on the implementation of this chapter and its impact upon state government.

Section 2. That existing sections 3701.143 and 4117.10 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.

Section 3. Section 1 of this act applies to collective bargaining agreements entered into on or after the effective date of this section.

Section 4. Section 3701.143 of the Revised Code is presented in this act as a composite of the section as amended by both H.B. 37 and S.B. 100 of the 135th General Assembly. The General Assembly, applying the principle stated in division (B) of section 1.52 of the Revised Code that amendments are to be harmonized and reconciled if reasonably capable of simultaneous operation, finds that the composite is the resulting version of the section in effect prior to the effective date of the section as presented in this act.